First Dance
by AnEquivalentExchange
Summary: Oneshot. Friendly Alwin fluff. Winry helps Al recuperate his body in an unusual way: dancing.


Alphonse lied with his legs taking up the length of the old couch. He bent one arm up behind his head to use as a cushion and rested the other on his stomach. His thumb kept his book to the correct page. The smell of almost-done apple pie floated through the air, and there was the sound of creaking floorboards as the other occupants of the house went about with their daily chores.

It had been months since the Promised Day. Months since Ed, with a little help from Al, foiled Father's plan and saved the countries. Months since the brothers had restored their bodies, and months since their homecoming to Resembool.

The red and orange leaves had finished falling from their trees, and neighboring farms were beginning to prepare for the oncoming winter.

Alphonse's mind was lost within the pages of the novel—he had lost track of time as well of how long he had been lying there—when the sounds of nearby footsteps drew him back into reality.

Winry shuffled into the room, footsteps labored as she carried in a large metal box.

Al folded the book over his thumb to keep his place, and sat up on his elbows as his friend sat down heavily in the adjacent chair, placing the box down on the hardwood floor. "What's that?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"I found it up in the attic. It was my father's from when my parents were still dating." She undid the two bronze clasps on the box's front and lifted up its lid.

"A record player?" Al asked.

"Yeah." Winry smiled softly, and began combing through the records that were tucked into the record player's pocket on the inside of its lid. "I heard," she said, pulling one specific record from the pocket with a grunt, "that dancing is a great form of exercise. It might be good for your recovery."

It was true that since the Elrics had returned to their home in Resembool that Winry had taken over trying to help Al recover fully. Ed had done his best during those first few weeks in the hospital, but Winry had insisted upon helping once they had arrived home. She grew up reading medical text books and came from a long line of doctors. Her skills and knowledge of automail also gave her an advantage when it came to knowing about the human body and its makeup.

Al trusted her wholeheartedly when it came to his recovery, but still…He sat up straight, placing his book down on the floor. "You can't seriously think I'm just going to get up and start dancing."

"No, you dummy." She put her chosen record in place and put the needle on the record. She stood and approached Al, holding her hand out to him. "You can dance with me."

Alphonse shrunk back. He sputtered. "But I—I don't know how to dance."

The music had begun. It was a soft but upbeat song played on string instruments. "Neither do I." She stretcher out her hand a bit farther. "C'mon, Al."

He couldn't deny her, not when she had that sun-shine bright smile on her face. "O-okay," he said, hesitantly taking his friend's hand.

She pulled him up in a swift motion. "Just tell me if you get tired and need a break."

"Right."

Winry took his right hand and placed it on her hip before clasping Al's free hand in hers. She placed her other hand gently upon his broad shoulder. Al noted that she had to reach; in the months since regaining his body he had already grown to be almost a head taller than her.

"You're going to have to learn to dance sometime anyway," Winry stated as they began. "You're going to need to know it for when you have a wife one day."

As soon she said that, Al's foot faltered and he stepped on Winry's. He drew back quickly with a cringe. "Oh—sorry." Then he chuckled. "Let's hope my dancing skills aren't the only thing my wife cares about."

Winry smiled and began to lead with fluid motions, going to the beat of the music. Her movements were fluid, her feet sweeping against the floor and hips swaying, making her dark coral dress flutter against her knees.

"I thought you said you didn't know how to dance," Alphonse said after a lull in their conversation that was only filled by the sound of violin strings.

Winry pursed her lips in thought. "I don't. Not really anyway. But I saw it in a movie once and I guess I picked up some of the moves from that. There was a man and woman dancing together. Just the way they seemed to connect through that dance got to me. And I knew from then on that I always wanted to dance with someone. At least once. Just to know how it feels."

"So is this your first time dancing with someone?"

Winry nodded. "Yup. You're the first, Al."

Al chuckled. "I'm honored."

"Giving me my first dance. You're like my knight in shining armor."

_Armor._

Winry's face fell as she realized what she had said. "I, uh, I didn't mean to…"

"No, it's okay," Al said truthfully, not even breaking from his movements. And it really was. He was beginning a new chapter in his life; he wasn't about to let the past get him down, not after everything he had gone through to be like this, and after everything Ed had sacrificed to make it happen. Alphonse closed his eyes and gently inhaled. When his eyes reopened and found himself staring into Winry's blue ones. "Thank you, Winry."

She gave him a quizzical look. "What for?"

"For everything you've done. For treating me and Brother like family and welcoming us home no matter how long we'd been away. And for accepting us after all the mistakes we made, and caring about me even when I wasn't exactly human. It means a lot to me. Thank you." He hadn't meant to say all of that, but now that it was out in the open, his chest felt a bit lighter.

"Oh, Al." Her expression had softened and her eyes were swimming. "You know you don't have to thank me for that. I would have done whatever I could for you guys no matter what you did."

Alphonse nodded his head once. "I know. I just wanted to tell you."

Winry smiled and hugged him by the middle. Alphonse didn't hesitate to return the action, resting his chin on the top of her head. He realized they were still dancing. Their movements had slowed, now their bodies swayed together gently, contradicting the energetic beat of the music.

Footsteps entering the room is what made the two part. Ed stopped at the threshold as he saw them. His eyes traveled from his brother and best friend, to the record player and back. Confusion twisted his expression. "What are you guys doing?"

Al motioned to the record player. "We're dancing, Brother."

Winry agreed. "We thought it might help with Al's recovery."

Al gave Winry a knowing smile that she didn't even notice. "I'm actually feeling recovered already. Here, Ed, you take over." He took Winry's hand, her dress flaring majestically at the hem as he spun her directly into Ed's chest.

Ed jumped at the impact. He blushed profusely as Winry took his wrists in his hands. "Come on, Ed. It's your turn to dance with me."

"Yeah, Brother," Al chimed in, huffing an exhausted sigh as he fell back onto the couch.

"I—um," he stuttered, his blush growing deeper from the unwanted attention he was suddenly receiving. Suddenly he pulled his wrists from Winry's grip. One hand shot to the back of his head as he turned his face away. "I, uh, I just remembered Granny wanted me to…um…to fix the uh…" He quickly turned on his heel and left the room without another word.

Winry turned on her heel, arms crossed tightly over her chest and her mouth twisted into a frown. There was a light blush tinting her cheeks as well as she rolled her eyes and muttered, "That idiot."

* * *

**[A/N: Not really satisfied with how it came out, but I've been wanting to write this story for a while. This website lacks friendly Alwin, or Alwin in general, so I thought I'd help :)]**


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